Many small jobs around
the house can't be done in the shop. Instead, they often have to occur
on-site. That means going to the shop to get the tools needed to do the
job. However, this special paper towel rack gives your craft fair and
flea market customers the perfect place to stash away a small tack hammer,
a screwdriver or two and a pair of pliers. It's also great for sewing
supplies...a small pad of note paper and a pencil...the car keys...or
what have you. In short, it's a multi-purpose towel rack that's
unique enough that it'll put you well ahead of your competitors at shows...and
help you wipe-up the profits!

2: Transfer
the patterns from the drawings to your stock and cut out all contours
with your Bandsaw. To save time, you can attach four of each piece together
with double-stick
tape and pad saw them all simultaneously. Use your drum
sander and disc sander to smooth all the edges. Here's another time-saving
trick - Shopsmith's
Oscillating Drum Sander Attachment can be adjusted to provide up to
3/4" of up-down travel...more than enough to make quicker work of sanding
the internal curves on a stack of up to four identical 3/4" thick pieces.

3: Drill the
1" dia. holes in the sides to accept the towel bar.

4: Set up
your Shopsmith
Router Package and use the special "3-in-1"
Router Bit and the 1/4"
Router Chuck to make your initial 1/2" deep cuts around the inside
perimeters of the top and lid. Guide your workpieces against your rip
fence for added control when making these cuts. Once you've cut the first
groove around the perimeter of both pieces, switch to a 3/4"
straight router bit, re-adjust your rip fence and your depth-of-cut
to remove the balance of the center waste.

5: Turn the
handles (E)
on the lathe. If you have a Shopsmith
Lathe Duplicator, you can follow the directions in your Duplicator
Owner's Manual and make a duplicator template that will allow you to turn
up to 7 or 8 handles from a single long piece of stock..

6: Cut the
handles apart with your bandsaw and drill a 15/16" diameter x 3/4" deep
hole in the end of each handle for the 1" towel bar. Sand the ends of
the towel bar (F)
on your disc sander until you achieve a snug fit on the handles.

8: Assemble
the towel holder by attaching the sides (A)
to the back (B)
with #8 x 1-1/2" flathead wood screws. Use 4-penny finishing nails and
glue to attach the top (C)
to the sides. Attach the lid (D)
to the back with hinges. Sand the holder and apply the finish of your
choice.